From: Pilgrimpub@aol.comSent: Tuesday, May 25, 2004
10:21 AMTo: Mentonebay@aol.comSubject: RESPONSES TO RECENT
ARTICLES? [05/25/04]A PASTOR INQUIRES ABOUT THE RESPONSES
WE HAVEHAD FROM THOSE WHO OPPOSE PUBLIC INVITATIONS [05/25/04]

In a message dated 5/24/2004 11:21:35 PM Central Daylight Time, a
Pastor asks:

Bob

Have any of our Founders' friends responded
to your concerns about the use or abuse of the public invitation or about the
infant altar call?

BOB'S
REPLY:

We
have had no replies from any of the writers whose anti-invitation
articles we have mentioned or critiqued -- which includes brethren Erkel,
Zaspel, Ehrhard, Reisinger, Murray, and Hulse -- and so far as I know we
have not had any response from any one of "our Founders' friends," as you call
them. Some may be in the process of "loading their gunes," but so far none of
them have "fired."

I really don't think the brethren are used to having
someone -- especially a Calvinist -- question or expose their
misappropriation of C. H. Spurgeon, nor their endorsement of the
objections to public invitations put forth by those who promote Pedobaptist
soteriology, such as Iain Murray. And I don't think they are used to having
the objections offered against the "invitation system" applied to the
objectors' own practices, such as Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' "office system"
and Mr. Murray's "infant baptism invitation system."

Neither has
any one attempted to collect our $100 reward for information from Spurgeon
which proves that he opposed the public invitation system. This offer not only
was mailed to our list, but it is now on our website, inviting anyone in the
world to collect the $100. If and when any one substantiates the assertion made
by Brother Zaspel that -- >>Charles Spurgeon often warned against
the invitation system, even in his public preaching to the lost. It was not
uncommon to hear him warn, "God has not appointed salvation by
enquiry-rooms">> then we will publish the winner's name on our website
and of course let you know.

Nothing is said in that snippet from
Spurgeon to the effect that he warned against the "invitation system." The fact
is, he here referred to "enquiry-rooms," and he was not saying that he was
"against" enquiry-rooms as such; rather, he spoke against the mistake of
thinking that "salvation" was "appointed by enquiry-rooms."

We
have demonstrated from Spurgeon's own magazine that the use of
enquiry-rooms was a common practice at the Tabernacle and was used by
Spurgeon's own "Society of Evangelists," according to the numerous instances we
cited from Spurgeon's "Sword and Trowel." The Evangelists he sponsored,
supported, and used in campaigns at the Tabernacle made use of enquiry-rooms, so
Spurgeon obviously did not oppose them.

But if Brother Zaspel is
equating "enquiry-rooms" with the "invitation system," then that
would mean that in all those references we gave where Spurgeon spoke
approvingly of enquiry-rooms he was therefore speaking approvingly of the
"invitation system."

It seems that those who lap-up the
palabber which the anti-invitation writers have on the Internet are not aware of
what Spurgeon actually believed and practiced, and thus these brethren
have had a "free ride." But we are "sick and tired" of their abuse of Spurgeon,
so we will keep the "heat" on them until they do what the Preterists did when we
put the "heat" on them -- finally, finally, they admitted the truth that
Spurgeon did not endorse Preterism, but was aFuturist and a
Premillennialist. -- Bob L. Ross

A FEW EXCERPTS FROM THE GOOD
RESPONSES WE HAVE HAD:

>> [From a Pastor]

Dear
brother,

The other day, a lady approached me after the service
saying "I want to receive the Lord." All my Reformed Baptist dashboard
alarms and buzzers went off, my first thought was: "This is because I was
emotional and she was moved by my tears, this is not a true conversion", and all
of that subtle hyper-Calvinism and "preparationism" that creeps into some of us
(to our shame) came to my mind. Yet, I sat down with this dear lady,
repeated the Gospel to her, invited her to pray for mercy, and so she did, and I
rejoiced at an old style fundamentalist profession of faith that I had not seen
for years. We are hopeful that it was a true conversion. 1/2 hour
later, I did the same with a young black man, who again approached me with some
disturbances of soul. Of course, only the Lord knows when and what really
happened with these people, and only He knows, when and if they were (or had
already been) truly regenerate.

I am not planning to go on the
"invitational system," and I sincerely do not feel comfortable with spending
time at the sound of "just as I am" asking people to come forward, you do not
come across as someone who would "manipulate" people into a profession either,
but I still appreciate your thinking "outside of the
box.">>

>> [From a
Missionary]

Bob--

How about you reworking all of your "public
invitation" correspondence and posts into a published book? I think it
would sell well--I know I'd buy it for the documentation alone, and I'm sure it
would prove popular with many independent Baptist
groups. >>

>> [From a Pastor]

Brother
Bob,

I appreciate these series of articles. I am a Calvinist who is NOT
comfortable with the attitudes of most Calvinists. Most of these fellows are
suspicious of anyone who is not exactly where they are on every issue
(eschatology, church government, invitations, etc.) I have ceased attending any
pastor's fellowships of Calvinists, because of these
attitudes.

Interesting that the
truth that should humble us the most, seems to be held by the proudest of
people. Your articles reflect a sound balance. God bless
you.>>

>> [From a Church
Member]

I am not altogether sympathetic with
the booklet "The Invitation System." I am a Reformed Baptist . . .
and we do not use the invitation in the services. I was interested in your
comments to Ian Murray. Something is wrong when people are not given the
opportunity to respond to the message. I really believe that that is the
reason that Presbyterianism has died on the vine. Although I do not agree
with a continual giving an invitation in every service, visitors and children
have no way of knowing how, when or where to respond to the message.
Perhaps you could share with me some of your thought on the
matter. >>

>> [From a
Pastor]

Brother:

Your reply is certainly on target.
Sadly, the "Reformed Baptists" seem to have read more of the paedo
"baptizers" than the historic Baptist fathers. Even more alarming is their
attempt to force upon Scripture what is patently not there regarding "covenant
children" and the "baptizing" of infants. Although we do not use the
typical "altar call" it is our practice to "invite" convicted sinners to make
their concern known and to instruct them in the Gospel.

This is all an
aside to my other purpose in writing, which is to inform you that I am receiving
duplicate copies of your emails. >>

NOTE: If any of you
are receiving two mailings, please let us know. -- Bob

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